Cultural Identity

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses cultural identity and how people who live in multi-cultural societies may identify themselves as a citizen of that country, but they feel that they belong to a different cultural group. The writer describes how, as an American Pakistani, she identifies with two cultures and tries to somehow make a connection between the two cultures that she grew up in.

From the Paper:

"As an American Pakistani, I try to somehow make a connection between the two cultures that I grew up in. Despite the fact that I am completely open to interacting with any culture, I must admit that I find a sense of stability in being close to people that come from the same cultural group as I am. The bonding factor between me and other Pakistanis students, besides similar experiences as we grew up, is religion. Although we are not fanatics as people tend to classify us, religion is an important factor in our lives and as a college student or as a member of any collective, I tend to get close to people that share my beliefs. After September 11, the need for relating to other people that were going through the same as experience as I did increased and I grew closer to people from the same cultural group as I. It is hard to receive understanding from people that can not understand you because they have different cultural backgrounds. Of course, the fact that I relate more to Pakistanis students does not mean that I alienate myself from society. We still live in a multicultural environment that we must adapt to."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Culture of Pakistan, available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Pakistan;
• Sharmeen, Hassan, The Pakistani identity crisis, available at http://www.pakistanlink.com/Letters/2004/oct04/08/04.html;
• Chapter 4, Cultural Patterns andCcommunication: Foundations.
• Chapter 6, Cultural Identity, Cultural Biases, and Intercultural Contact.

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